Still enjoying Nasi Kandar Imigresen

We had lunch at one of the oldest nasi kandar spots in town: Nasi Kandar Imigresen on Lorong Pasar yesterday.

Nasi Kandar Imigresen harked back to the 1930s, although it was not a registered business back then. Current third-generation owner, Faizan Ali, shared his grandfather (the founder)'s tale of having Japanese soldiers around during the time he was hawking nasi kandar.

They got their name from its original location outside the immigration office on Beach Street. They were forced to relocate when a new immigration director didn't like having a hawker food stall located in front of the office.

Despite being offered to relocate to the Esplanade's food court, they decided on its current location, which the owners felt is more suitable for their business.

Today, it's still one of the most dependable and most recognizable nasi kandar spots in town - well-known for their milder curries, and the gentle demeanor of Faizan Ali's father who, despite relinquishing control of the business to his son 20 years ago, is still present at the stall to serve all the customers himself.

Pak Ali (in white kopiah/Muslim cap) is the 2nd-generation owner of Nasi Kandar Imigresen. Soft-spoken and gentle, Pak Ali is the gracious host whom many customers come back for.

I was served by the old boss, Pak Ali, himself yesterday: gentle, soft-spoken and very polite to all his customers. He recommended the stall's specialties to a first-time customer like me: 𝘢𝘺𝘢𝘮 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘢𝘬 𝘳𝘰𝘴 (red-hued chicken curry) and 𝘨𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘪 𝘥𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 (a dark, thick beef curry).

Pak Ali then drizzled his stall's famous trinity of curry gravies: 𝘬𝘶𝘢𝘩 𝘪𝘬𝘢𝘯 (fish gravy), 𝘬𝘶𝘢𝘩 𝘢𝘺𝘢𝘮 (chicken gravy) and 𝘬𝘶𝘢𝘩 𝘥𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 (beef gravy) onto my plate of rice. To him, a plate of nasi kandar is never complete without a mix of these gravies.

A generous sprinkling of crisp, aromatic 𝘣𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨 (golden-fried onions) crowned each of our plates of messy deliciousness.

Pak Ali reminded me not to miss the 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘭 𝘯𝘺𝘪𝘰𝘳, the Mamak adaptation of Tamil kara-chutney (red-hued spicy, chili-infused coconut chutney), set in a large serving bowl upfront for customers to help themselves. I'd seen similar coconut chutneys at Merlin Nasi Kandar (at Union St) and Nasi Kandar Ganja in Ipoh, but those were dispensed out sparingly by the respective nasi kandar-men, never as generously offered as here at Nasi Kandar Imigresen.

What a feast for the eyes, as for one's palate - the ultimate gastronomic experience in Penang.